Vangelis Unleashed! takes the audience on a journey to the man within
Speaking to SBS Greek Evangelos Arabatzis said that the new play is an improvised monologue that allows for introspection and search for meaning. Issues of identity, relationships, sexuality and belonging underpin the performances of Vangelis Unleashed! which run from the 18th to the 21st of June at the Butterfly Club in Melbourne's CBD.
Listen to Evangelos Arabatzis' interview by clicking on the icon next to the image.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
‘Exploded': Influencer's horror near-death sauna ordeal
Aussie model Dominique Elissa has detailed how a peaceful escape turned into a nightmare when she nearly lost her life in a terrifying freak accident. The 30-year-old influencer shared a shocking story of the near-death experience that happened in the backyard of a house she was staying in. She posted a video on TikTok this week, explaining how she narrowly escaped death in a clip that has over 80,000 views. The podcast host was staying at a house 30 minutes outside Byron Bay, where she was set to host a wellness retreat the next day. But her tranquil getaway was ruined when a sauna on the property exploded just moments before she was about to use it. 'I didn't think I was going to talk about this, but I had a crazy, traumatising, near-death experience the other night,' Elissa said. She had turned on the sauna to heat up while cooking dinner, planning to use it afterwards as she had done the night before. 'I finish eating dinner and I'm about to put my swimmers on to go in the sauna, and I hear 'boom',' she explained. 'I look up and the entire sauna exploded.' The blast sent debris flying 10 to 15 metres into the air, causing a power cut in her remote accommodation. 'My phone was about to die, and I had no reception,' she said. 'I was screaming, 'Help, someone help me!' It was like a horror movie'. She managed to dial triple-0, but emergency services were unable to save the sauna. '(It) burned to the ground,' she said. 'It was the most horrific thing to experience because I was only a few minutes from going into that sauna'. 'I'm so grateful to be alive, so grateful to be here,' the wellness enthusiast added. Comments from her 73,000 TikTok followers quickly flooded in. 'This is straight out of a Final Destination movie,' one follower wrote, while another added, 'new fear unlocked'. Many also believed that Elissa's late mother, Odile Faludi, who passed away in March after a battle with stage four cancer, was watching over her. 'OMG Dom, life is so precious, your mum was there watching over you,' one follower commented, echoing the thoughts of many. Others shared their shock that this could even happen. 'I have never heard of this before,' one person admitted. 'Never going to a sauna again,' another claimed. Saunas can explode and burn down for a number of reasons. Malfunctions in the heater or thermostat can lead to electrical fires, as can poor design – like installing a heater too close to timber walls or ceilings. Leaving towels or other flammable items on or near the heater can also cause them to ignite quickly. While uncommon, some saunas use hot rocks that have internal cracks. If water becomes trapped within these cracks, it can heat up and cause the rocks to explode.
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Tamworth, Albury previews: Trainer Sue Grills eager to see what bargain buys can deliver
Sue Grills will use Monday's hometown meeting at Tamworth to take the wrapping off two of her unraced brigade who could have both been bought for no more than $5,000. The duo – Pride Of Nations and Artie's Magic – were each offered at the HTBA Yearling Sale at Inglis' Riverside complex in April, 2023. Lot 113, now known as Artie's Magic, was knocked down for $3,000. Later on the same day, Lot 257, now called Pride Of Nations, fetched just $2,000 when she was put through the ring. Grills knows first-hand that (high) price doesn't always mean (high) performance, pointing to her own $2,000 purchase at the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale in 2017 where she snapped up an Animal Kingdom close relation to Pride Of Dubai. Its name was My Benalla. 'He was a really good horse,'' Grills says. ' He could have potentially been the best horse I ever trained but I just couldn't keep him sound. 'He had a lot of issues. He was a really big horse who had crook pasterns but he still won four races from six starts.' MY BENALLA ðŸ'¥ returned with a bang @sconeraceclub after 20 months off recovering from a tendon injury, gives #Kosciusko slot holders something to think about @garyharleysky @garykliese @MickWallaceMail @daveystan1 @P_L_Looker @MelindaTurner_ — Andy Grills (@andy_8005) September 7, 2021 Grills' Tamworth debutante Pride Of Nations boasts a pedigree far in excess of her meagre price-tag. For starters, she is a daughter of Doncaster winner Kermadec who is credited with Group 1 winner Montefelia. Better still, Pride Of Nation's grand-dam, Tessamo, is a daughter of 2YO Triple Crown winner Tierce and is a half-sister to Guy Walter's four-times Group 1 winner, Streama. Alas, it seems it was not Pride Of Nation's pedigree that turned buyers off at the sale, it was her physique. 'When they bought her apparently she was very small,'' Grills explained. 'I didn't see her at the sale, I only got her six or seven months ago and I gave her a little prep and gave her six or seven weeks' break and back in again. 'I don't expect too much of her for her first start, trials are so different to races, but she's a nice little filly. 'It's no good putting her over 1000m, she is bred to run further, so 1200m looks a nice start for her on her home track with a good draw.' Artie's Magic, like Pride Of Nation's, will be handled by champion country jockey Kody Nestor when he steps out in the Concrete Industry Supplies Maiden Plate (1000m). 'He's a bit the same as Pride Of Nations,'' Grills says. 'I only got him this prep. 'He was well-educated. (Tamworth trainer) Mark Milton had done a great job with him, then I got him so I've only had him a couple a months. 'He trialled okay too (so) I think he'll run a nice race. 'He has drawn the outside barrier but it doesn't matter so much at the 1000m now at Tamworth because they've only got one turn and they're home.' Flying Artie boasts a fascinating pedigree owing to a rare 3 X 3 double-cross of champion racehorse and sire, Century. Grills' third runner on Monday's card is So Rosie who resumes after a short, sharp, successful last campaign that was not without drama. . @chelseahillier4 guides So Rosie to victory in Race 5 at Dubbo! — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) September 29, 2024 'She's got her barrier issues so you're just better off giving her a couple of starts and putting her out,'' Grills said. 'She had to re-trial because she got scratched at Coonabarabran or somewhere. She hit her stifle bad coming out of the gates so I had to put her out again for a month. 'It is a good race for her but I wish she had the outside and not the inside barrier.' â– â– â– â– â– Travers does the Math at Albury The stars, or more precisely, the clouds, have aligned to boost the already bright prospects of a ninth victory for warrior queen Mathrin at Albury on Monday. The Michael Travers -trained mare has a 72.2 per cent win/place record on Heavy tracks throughout her long career. Better still, the Kitchwin Hills-bred mare has a 100 per cent record on the Albury Heavy, having knocked off a hot Class 1 that day which included subsequent Country Championship Final participant, Tap 'N' Run. 'She is a gun,'' Travers said. 'She loves it wet and she's going well, we are just going to need luck because she gets back in her races. 'She is our stable stalwart and we love her to death. We treat her like a queen here.' Understandably so, given Mathrin has won eight races for trainer Travers, two of which he steered her to himself in his days as a dual licence holder. Mathrin under a strong ride from @DanBeasley111 gets home in Race 6 at @mtcwagga. Bringing up a double for Dan this afternoon ðŸ'� — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 31, 2024 'She just keeps turning up,'' an admiring Travers says. 'She is just all heart and doesn't know how to not put in a good run.' Mathrin's tally of starts will tick over to 78 on Monday but she shows no signs of tapering off. In fact, she won the Cowra Cup at her 70th race day appearance, adding the Corowa Cup at her 73rd. A thrilling finish to the Cowra Cup ðŸ�† and it's Mathrin who gets the photo for @TraversRacing! @COWRAJOCKEYCLUB — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) January 19, 2025 Mathrin will have company in Monday's Boss Better Living Systems Benchmark 82 Handicap (1400m) from the former Leilani Lodge resident Kahawaty, who is one-for-one at Albury only it was on a Good 3. 'She's another one who races really well all the time but unfortunately the wet is not going to help her at all,'' Travers warned. Travers is also hoping a positive barrier will lead to a positive outcome for flashy chestnut filly, the hitherto unlucky Gioia River. 'She has been racing really well,'' Travers says. 'I thought she could win last start if she had drawn a gate but we have been forced to go back to the tail of the field all the time, so hopefully on Monday she can travel a little bit closer.' Born and raised at Arrowfield Stud, Gioia River was knocked down to Gai Waterhouse et al for $175,000 at the 2023 Magic Millions Sale. A daughter of The Autumn Sun, Travers' filly counts two champions in her family; namely our own Hartnell and the immortal Suave Dancer.
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Australian chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty reveals grandmaster ambitions
For 11-year-old chess prodigy Reyaansh Chakrabarty, the hit Netflix show The Queen's Gambit sparked a love for the game that now takes him around the world on a quest to become Australia's first world champion. 'During the pandemic, I watched it a little bit, it's one of the things that got me interested in chess,' he told NewsWire this week in an exclusive interview. 'I didn't really know what chess was but I found it quite amusing, the pieces. 'She (Beth Harmon) is like looking up on the ceiling and watching the pieces move.' Like the fictional hero of the smash-hit show, Reyaansh imagines chess games in his head. 'I see pieces kind of everywhere,' he said. Reyaansh, from western Sydney, is a FIDE master with a classical rating of 2346 and his sharp rise has the Australian chess world excited. 'He is showing a lot of promise at a young age,' Australian Chess Federation publicity director Paul Power told NewsWire. The next level is international master, which generally means a rating of 2400 and three 'norms' or performance benchmarks a player needs to hit to gain the title. And then there is the rarefied world of grandmaster, a huge achievement that takes years of dedicated practice, study and ambition. Australia has only produced 10 grandmasters from a global field of about 2000. 'It's hard to predict that he is necessarily going to become a grandmaster, but he is certainly going about it the right way,' Mr Power said. 'Should he get to the GM title, Australia would be very pleased. It would be a feather in the cap, not just for Reyaansh and his family but for Australia.' Reyaansh's ambitions go even further and he dreams about becoming world champion. 'It's a huge call but right now I'm focused on improving step-by-step,' he said. It's an ambition that might seem extraordinary for an 11-year-old, but chess is a young person's game. The world champion is 18-year-old Indian wonder Gukesh Dommaraju, who ascended the throne in 2024 after beating Chinese GM Ding Liren in Singapore. Before Gukesh, the title was held by Norwegian legend Magnus Carlsen, widely credited as one of the greatest players in history alongside Garry Kasparov and controversial American icon Bobby Fischer. Mr Carlson became world champion at the age of 22. Reyaansh, a year 6 student at Strathfield South in Sydney's inner west, trains about five hours a day during the week, one hour before school and then four hours in the afternoon, and then for eight hours on Saturdays and Sundays. 'My school is very supportive of my chess, so I don't have much homework to do,' he said. 'But of course you still have to go to school and complete whatever you have to do.' He practises tactics and openings, or the first few moves in chess that dictate the development of a game, and constantly analyses his games looking for errors. Reyaansh also studies with Polish grandmaster Jacek Stopa through the Sydney Chess Academy, with face-to-face classes. 'He teaches me how deeply you need to prepare to get to the GM level,' he said. 'At the end of the class I'm very tired. The puzzles he gives me are very tough, like grandmaster level.' For black, Reyaansh loves the Caro-Kann and Queen's Gambit Declined defences. For white, he loves the Italian and Ruy Lopez openings. Russian champion Boris Spassky and Mr Fischer are his favourite players. 'I think he (Spassky) was very strong but also a nice guy. Bobby Fischer because he was a genius, one of the best players to ever live.' Reyaansh was born in Kolkata in India and immigrated to Australia at the age of two with his parents Sounak and Tapasri, both of whom support his chess dreams. Reyaansh has already beaten GMs, including Australian heavyweight Darryl Johansen at a match in Melbourne. 'It was the first GM I defeated,' Reyaansh said. 'It was a good game, it was probably heading towards a draw but he blundered and I won it.' Mr Johansen was gracious in defeat. 'He was a bit disappointed, but we discussed some moves after the game,' Reyaansh said. But there was no time to celebrate. 'I had two games the next day, so I had to kind of forget about it and prepare for the next time.' The youngster, who likes to read JK Rowling and the Dog Man comic books, has also interacted with legends of the game, including former world champion Vishy Anand, whom he met in Singapore. 'It was like a dream come true. He gave me advice on staying patient,' Reyaansh said. He returned to Sydney last week after competing in a tournament in Norway and has travelled to the Czech Republic, Hungary, Belgium, Switzerland and Singapore to play against the best players in the world. When asked what he found really special about chess, he emphasised the intensity of the game and the mental focus it took to win. 'Even if you play perfectly the whole game, if you make one mistake, it's over,' he said. 'You need to focus from start to finish. You can't ever let you guard down.' Chess is in the midst of a popularity boom, triggered in part by The Queen's Gambit and the rising visibility of grandmasters on social media. Netflix claims more than 62 million people watched the show in its first 28 days on the streaming platform. Mr Power has also witnessed a growing number of youngsters trying out the game. 'The enthusiasm of primary level students is refreshing,' he said. For Reyaansh, finding a 'love for the game' is the first step children should take in their own chess pursuits. 'You have to find your love for the game,' he said. 'Otherwise, you'll kind of feel it is a chore. If you don't love it, you'll feel bored with it.'
